Last year, Argentina was divided when the law to legalise abortion was rejected.

Among the political chaos, was the ‘crazy baby lady’, an infamous anti-abortion activist who pushed to assure the law would not pass.

We spoke to Andrew Gold, a Watford filmmaker, to learn more about his time with the ‘crazy baby lady’ and the referendum.

Andrew Gold, 30, who grew up in Carpenders Park, spent the last few months of his six years of living in Argentina finalising a passion project about the country’s anti-abortion law.

In 2018 he released ‘Exorcism: The Battle for Young Minds’, a BBC Three documentary about corrupt Argentinean exorcism rituals, and today he is calling for additional crowdfunding for his latest documentary.

His upcoming film, ‘Abortion: My Body, Their Choice’, talks to Mariana Rodríguez Varela who has often been dubbed as the ‘crazy baby lady’ due to her controversial anti-abortion views and hypocritical past.

Before leaving Argentina, Mr Gold followed Ms Varela around, while also going undercover at a fake abortion clinic and walking the streets of protests surrounding the legality of abortions.

Mr Gold said: “It’s something I actually really care about; I have a lot of friends that have struggled with abortion issues and I felt this film could make a difference. It became a big story because the vote was coming out.

“It’s a country so catholic and traditional and this was the first time for many young activists to come out and make a change.”

Despite the outcries of pro-choice campaigners, abortion is still illegal in Argentina after the referendum took place on August 2018.

Meeting the ‘crazy baby lady’

Hillingdon Times:

Mr Gold never expected to find Ms Varela, a woman which the media portrayed as a monster, to be surprisingly a very friendly character.

“I thought of her how I’d seen her portrayed on the news, you always see her screaming and shouting, but she was incredibly friendly. She gave us food, took us to meet her children.

“She reminded me of the aunt people have which everyone disagrees with at dinner.”

Ms Varela is a character driven by her anti-abortion activism. She’d carry her signature plastic foetus everywhere she could – her way of visualising to opponents her belief that an abortion is killing a life.

Her efforts, while effective in riling up crowds, appear somewhat hypocritical when considering her father, Alberto Rodriquez Varela. He was a justice minister for the military dictatorship of the 1970s and 1980s, the same dictatorship known for disappearing 30,000 babies.

Mr Gold added: “She believes that abortion is killing a child. But it’s my belief, and the belief of the progressive secular world, that according to science that it is not the truth.”

Mr Gold compared Ms Varela to Nigel Farage, someone actively present when a movement was happening, who becomes notably less active until another political change takes place.

The documentary centred around discussions with Ms Varela, prove for the ‘crazy baby lady’ to be a fascinating character – regardless if you personally relate to her beliefs.

The truth of undercover abortions

Hillingdon Times:

To find an actual abortion clinic requires trial-and-error. Pregnant women either stumble into fake undercover abortion clinics or are forced to pay an expensive amount and are operated in unsanitary and gruesome conditions. Finding a legitimate and safe abortion clinic is hard to come by.

During the documentary, Producer Lucy D’Cruz visits a place which poses to be an abortion clinic, but instead tries to persuade patients against abortions. Captured all with a spy-camera pen and carrying a pregnant urine sample, Ms D’Cruz and Mr Gold found out for themselves how these ‘clinics’ pushed anti-abortion propaganda.

“I think they’re aiming at the percentage of people who are undecided, or people coming from religious family. This might just push them over the edge to force them to keep a baby, or just depress themselves with their decision.”

Unfortunately, anti-abortion narratives are common in the typically conservative and religious country. As the referendum approached, the documentary highlights the various misleading statements shared by doctors and politicians, which were all broadcasted on television.

From his observations of how the public consumed this misinformation, Mr Gold said: “We live in a world where Trump can say anything. We know he’s lying, some other people know he’s lying, but it feeds into their narrative.

“We know deep down some of this isn’t true, but it supports your argument. All people are really interested in is winning their argument.”

The future of Argentina

Hillingdon Times:

Mr Gold is optimistic about there being change in the abortion laws. He surrounded himself in both pro-life and pro-choice rallies, both adamant about their beliefs.

“The pro-life one was like a funeral, they consider themselves to be mourning for life that is killed, so they are a bit more religious in that way. The pro-choice was a bit more rock-and-roll, breaking the establishment.”

Masses of groups turned up at the day of the referendum announcement, even though it was raining and freezing. When it was announced that abortions would remain illegal, there was a violent riot outbreaking by the pro-choice group.

One thing that was clear from the scene as Mr Gold and the camera crew stood in the middle of the protests was the fighting spirit. Many pro-choice campaigners and even Mr Gold share the same belief, that with more progressive attitudes coming forward, a change in abortion laws is bound to eventually happen.

Mr Gold and his production team are calling for additional crowdfunding to finish the final edits and production stages of the film.

He has lived in Berlin since he moved away from Argentina and is currently writing a book about paedophilia.

To help fund the film, visit: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/abortion-my-body-their-choice